The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) on Sunday banned all Russians from its own Games next month because of the widespread doping culture that it says has polluted sport in the country.
The IPC announced the decision to suspend the Russian Paralympic Committee in Rio, with its president Philip Craven saying that Russia’s Paralympians were part of a broken system that stems from the Russian government.
Russia immediately announced it would be appealing against the ban to the Court of Arbitration for Sport.
The IPC decision follows the publication of the McLaren Report last month that implicated Russian Para-athletes in the widespread doping and cover-ups that led to the selective banning of many competitors from the Olympics.
While the International Olympic Committee (IOC) decided against a blanket ban, the IPC had no such concerns about its own Games that run from Sept. 7-18.
Craven said on Sunday he had “deep sympathy” for the competitors who will miss the Paralympics but that the decision was taken in the best interests of the Paralympic movement.
